Chapter 2: The Shadow That Never Disappears

7:32 am.

The small house was quiet.

Aiden was still standing in the living room, holding a white card that felt much heavier than a piece of iron.

WELCOME HOME.

Two words.

But enough to bring back all the nightmares he had been trying to erase for five years.

He closed his eyes.

"...They found me."

Not the police.

Not the gangsters.

But NEXUS.

An organization that never failed to track down its targets.

If they knew Aiden was still alive...

Then they would also know about Lia.

And that was the thing he feared the most.

Without delay, Aiden took out his cell phone.

He dialed Lia's number.

"Hello?"

"Lia."

"Ha, brother?"

"Listen here."

Aiden's voice sounded unusually serious.

"Don't leave the university grounds today."

Lia chuckled.

"Why not?"

"Promise me."

"You're weird this morning."

"Lia."

The tone of her voice changed.

Firm.

Lia remained silent.

"...Okay."

"If someone you don't know tells you..."

"Don't listen to them."

"If someone follows you..."

"Go into a crowded place."

"If..."

"Brother."

Lia's voice cut off slowly.

"Brother..."

"Are you okay?"

Aiden was silent for a few moments.

"...Okay."

She hung up.

The truth was...

He was lying.

Workshop.

8:15 a.m.

A customer drove in with an old Proton Saga.

"Brother Aiden!"

Aiden put his mask back on.

A small smile.

A calm tone of voice.

"Morning."

"My car's giving me trouble."

"I can see."

No one would have thought...

As his hands were repairing the engine...

Aiden's eyes were always watching the side mirror of the workshop.

The white car.

Since eight o'clock.

Still not moving.

The man inside pretended to read the newspaper.

But every thirty seconds...

He looked towards the workshop.

Aiden noticed it.

But he pretended not to know.

11:40 am.

The white car finally left.

But five minutes later...

A black van stopped on the other side of the road.

"Good..."

Aiden whispered softly.

"They're starting to take turns."

He deliberately wiped his hands and walked outside to buy a bottle of water.

As soon as he passed the van...

His eyes only glanced at it.

Enough.

Four people.

Ex-military.

The way he sat.

The way he held the radio.

The way he watched.

They were all too trained.

"Not NEXUS."

Aiden concluded.

"Contractors."

They hired outsiders.

This means...

NEXUS is still not one hundred percent sure of his identity.

They are verifying.

And Aiden must remain a normal man.

Evening.

Glenmarie University.

Lia walks out with two of her friends.

They laugh while chatting.

Suddenly...

"Assalamualaikum, sis."

A well-dressed man reprimands.

Lia stops.

"Yes?"

"I'm from the scholarship company."

He holds out a card.

"We want to ask a few questions."

Lia smiles politely.

"Sorry, I have to go back."

The man is still smiling.

"Just five minutes."

"Sorry."

Lia walks away.

But the man's smile slowly disappears.

He touches the small earphone in his ear.

"Target didn't engage."

A cold voice answers.

"Don't touch that girl."

"Focus on his brother."

At the same time...

Aiden is driving towards the university.

For some reason...

His heart felt bad.

Very bad.

The phone rang.

The number was unknown.

He answered.

"Who?"

No voice.

Just the sound of breathing.

Then...

A hoarse male voice was heard.

"How long are you going to keep acting like a normal person..."

Aiden continued to brake.

The tires rubbed hard against the road.

His eyes widened.

The voice...

He knew it.

Impossible.

The man should have died five years ago.

The phone rang again almost immediately.

"We miss you..."

"...Orion."

The line was disconnected.

Aiden gripped the steering wheel until his knuckles turned white.

His face turned cold.

For the first time in five years...

The name was mentioned again.

Orion.

And far away in a skyscraper...

A man in a black mask was looking at Aiden's picture on the computer screen.

He smiled faintly.

"Long time no see..."

"My brother."

In the car, Only the hum of the engine broke the silence.

Aiden's fingers were still gripping the phone until his knuckles turned white.

"...Orion."

The name echoed in his head.

Five years.

Five years he had killed that identity.

Five years he had lived as Aiden Hale.

But in less than twenty-four hours, everything had begun to fall apart.

He took a deep breath.

Then he restarted the engine and continued on his way to Glenmarie University.

At the university...

Students filled the campus.

Some walked laughing, some hurriedly headed for the lecture hall.

Aiden parked his car in the parking lot facing the main door.

He didn't get out.

Instead...

His eyes watched everyone who passed by.

A man dressed as a food delivery man.

Two male students.

An old woman selling cookies.

A security guard.

Aiden's gaze stopped.

The guard was wearing a perfect uniform.

But his shoes...

Military tactical shoes.

Not safety shoes.

Aiden narrowed his eyes.

"Who are you really..."

The man pretended to check the student card.

However, his position was always facing the main door.

He was not guarding the university.

He was waiting for someone.

A few minutes later...

Aiden's phone rang.

LIA CALLING

"Hello?"

"Brother, I've finished class."

"Okay."

"Where are you?"

"In front of the faculty."

"Okay, wait a minute."

Not long after...

Lia appeared with two of her friends.

She waved at Aiden with a big smile.

"That's my brother."

One of her friends chuckled.

"Your brother's handsome too."

Lia continued to glare.

"Eh, don't be silly."

Aiden just nodded politely to them.

"Be careful."

"Bye, brother!"

Lia opened the car door and sat next to the passenger.

"Come on."

Aiden started the engine.

As the car started to move...

He looked through the rearview mirror.

The security guard was talking through a small communication device in his ear.

Then...

A black SUV started to slowly leave the parking lot.

Following them.

"Brother."

"Hm?"

"You've been really quiet today, brother."

"Tired."

"It's not because of work, right?"

Aiden didn't answer.

Lia looked at her brother's face for a few moments.

Even though Aiden tried to hide it...

She could see something.

Her brother was worried.

Very worried.

"Brother..."

"If there's a problem..."

"Tell Lia."

Aiden smiled slightly.

"It's nothing."

"That's the obligatory sentence, brother."

"There really isn't."

Lia snickered.

"Liar."

They both laughed.

Laughter that made Aiden forget for a moment that death might be following them.

The black SUV was still about a hundred meters behind.

Inside...

A man in a black coat was looking at Aiden's picture on a tablet.

"Stable movement."

"No suspicious actions."

The driver looked at him.

"Sir..."

"If it's true that he's Orion..."

"Why does he live like a normal person?"

The man smiled sarcastically.

"Because he wants us to believe."

"But humans..."

"...can't run away from instinct."

"Sooner or later..."

"He'll show who he really is."

That evening...

Aiden stopped at a supermarket.

"Let's buy some groceries."

Lia continued to smile.

"Great! Lia's cooking tonight."

They walked in together.

The supermarket was as busy as usual.

Children were running.

Mothers were choosing vegetables.

Workers were arranging items on the shelves.

But for Aiden...

Something felt odd.

Too many men alone.

One in the drinks section.

One in the frozen food aisle.

Another near the checkout counter.

They didn't buy anything.

But their position...

They were forming a loose circle.

Surrounding himself and Lia.

Aiden slowly grabbed the trolley.

"Four..."

"Five..."

"Six people."

It wasn't a coincidence.

They were testing the situation.

Lia was still busy choosing chocolates.

"Brother..."

"Is this delicious?"

Aiden forced himself to smile.

"Take it."

While his mind was working out an exit plan.

If they attacked now...

Aisle three was too narrow.

The emergency exit at the back of the store was closer.

But...

No.

He couldn't act.

Not yet.

Once he showed Orion's skills...

Everything would be over.

But unbeknownst to the two of them...

On the second floor of the supermarket...

A man in a gray coat was looking straight at Aiden.

He picked up the phone.

Then whispered quietly,

"I've found him."

On the other end of the line, a cold voice replied,

"Keep watching."

The man smiled thinly.

"No need."

"I'm quite familiar with the way he stands..."

"...Orion."

Aiden didn't take his eyes off the man in the gray coat on the second floor.

They were almost thirty meters away.

Too far to see his face clearly.

However...

The way the man stood.

The way he held the phone.

And the way his eyes never left the target.

Not an ordinary person.

"Not a contractor..."

Aiden whispered to himself.

"He's NEXUS."

Lia, who was choosing chocolates, didn't notice the change in her brother's expression.

"Brother."

"Hm?"

"Why?"

"It's nothing."

"You're overthinking again."

Aiden smiled faintly.

"Let's go back."

"Uh... wait a minute. I haven't chosen the sauce yet."

Without replying, Aiden pushed the trolley to the sauce section.

But his eyes were still watching the reflection of the refrigerator mirror in front of him.

The man in the gray coat...

He was gone.

On the second floor.

The man in the gray coat put his phone in his pocket.

He stepped into the quiet emergency corridor.

The iron door closed tightly as soon as he entered.

At the end of the corridor, a woman with short hair was waiting for him.

"How?"

The man nodded slowly.

"I'm sure."

"One hundred percent?"

"Yes."

The woman exhaled.

"Orion is still alive..."

The man smiled thinly.

"That's not all."

"What?"

"She's changed."

The woman raised an eyebrow.

"Changed how?"

"Before..."

"She would kill anyone who threatened her mission."

"But today..."

"She's holding back."

"What do you mean?"

The man looked down through the small window of the emergency corridor.

Aiden was seen walking beside Lia, pushing a trolley.

"She's already weak."

"That woman."

The woman looked too.

"Lia Hale."

"The only family she has."

The man nodded.

"As long as that woman is alive..."

"Orion won't be able to think calmly."

The woman was silent for a moment before saying slowly,

"Director Zero will love this news."

That evening...

Aiden and Lia arrived home.

"Brother!"

Lia picked up a plastic bag.

"We're having a good meal tonight."

Aiden helped carry the items to the kitchen.

Seeing Lia smile as she arranged the kitchen items made his heart ease a little.

Maybe...

Maybe she still had time to protect her sister.

"Brother."

"Hm?"

"Let's watch a movie later after eating."

"A movie?"

"Just at home."

Lia chuckled.

"You're always busy, aren't you."

Aiden smiled.

"In that case..."

"Okay."

Lia's eyes continued to shine.

"Yeayy!"

Seeing the joy, Aiden felt his chest slightly relieved.

However...

The joy didn't last long.

Night.

11:48 p.m.

Lia was asleep.

The whole house was quiet again.

Aiden stood on the back porch holding a cup of coffee.

The night wind blew softly.

He looked at the dark sky.

"If they really found me..."

"They'll be here soon."

Suddenly...

Click.

A soft sound was heard from the back fence.

Aiden didn't turn around.

He just put his coffee cup on the table.

A second sound followed.

Click...

Footsteps.

Slowly.

Very slowly.

An ordinary person would definitely not notice it.

But Orion's senses never really disappeared.

Without changing his expression, Aiden reached for the broom leaning against the wall.

It looked like he just wanted to tidy up the yard.

While his eyes were calculating the enemy's position through the reflection of the kitchen window.

One...

Two...

Three...

"Not one."

"They came in three."

One of the men dressed all in black jumped into the yard.

The second cut off the path to the front door.

The third stood on the roof.

They moved in unison.

Silent.

Trained.

Aiden sighed softly.

"It's no use..."

"I've tried to live like a normal person."

He gripped the broomstick a little tighter.

His eyes changed.

No longer the eyes of a mechanic.

But the eyes of a hunter.

On the roof, one of the intruders pressed the comm.

"Target is in visual."

"Instructions?"

Director Zero's cold voice came through.

"Don't kill him."

"I want to make sure..."

"...does Orion still remember how to kill?"

***Download NovelToon to enjoy a better reading experience!***